The Los Angeles Rams will be focused on handling their own business in 2025, but they’ll also have one eye on another NFC team throughout the season. And no, we’re not talking about a division rival in the West.
The Rams acquired the Atlanta Falcons’ 2026 first-round pick when they traded back from No. 26 to 46 in what was one of the most significant deals of the draft. As a result, Rams fans should be rooting against the Falcons every week, hoping they fall further and further down the standings.
The worse the Falcons’ record is, the better the Rams’ pick will be in 2026.
It’s hard to know exactly how good or bad Atlanta will be, but the oddsmakers have their own view of the team. BetMGM has set the Falcons’ projected win total at 7.5 games: -145 to the over and +120 to the under, meaning the over is more likely to hit.
Only seven teams have a lower projected win total than the Falcons, with five other teams tied at 7.5. That puts Atlanta in line to potentially finish with a top-10 pick in the draft, which would be sent to the Rams.
ESPN found a notable trend with the Falcons’ win totals the last seven years, too.
The Falcons have gone under their win total in six of the last seven seasons, covering only in 2022 with seven wins on a projected 4.5 total.
ESPN’s Mike Clay projects the Falcons to go under 7.5 wins and has them winning just 6.7 games, which is the sixth-lowest of any team. Needless to say, the Rams would be thrilled if the Falcons secured the sixth overall pick in the draft.
In terms of Super Bowl odds, only nine teams have worse odds than the Falcons, who are +8000 to win it all. Again, not a glowing endorsement about Michael Penix Jr.’s team.
There’s hope that Penix will turn into a star at quarterback and he looked fairly comfortable in limited action last year, but he’s essentially a first-year starter in the NFL, which could make it hard for Atlanta to win games.